The British Institute of Kitchen, Bedroom & Bathroom Installation, in partnership with Transpact.com, Europe's leading escrow provider, yesterday launched a new financial protection product to its members and their customers.

An escrow is a financial arrangement, where a third party holds and regulates payment of the funds required for two parties involved in a given transaction. The new service will allow members to provide optional, added peace of mind to their customers whilst protecting and increasing their own income and commercial interests.

Following contractual agreement to commence work to a written specification, the consumer transfers the contract fee for installation services into a secure escrow account managed by Transpact.com - a company authorised and regulated by The Financial Services Authority.

Both the consumer and member have full visibility of funds and work commences. Monies are instantly protected by the escrow.

For consumers, it guarantees they receive everything agreed in the contract, or their money back.

For BiKBBI members, it guarantees 100% payment for a completed job. Escrow combats the frustratingly constant problem of tradespeople being unfairly 'out of pocket' on completion of jobs, by securing the funds at the beginning of the project in a separate account, releasing full funds when the works have been completed to the standards outlined in the original contract.

"Whilst an escrow service may not be necessary for all situations, it is another great tool for our members to use with prospective customers," notes BiKBBI membership manager Lynsey Easom. "It's also the first of three financial services products we'll be launching to members over the next few weeks.

"Our members are operating in a fast-moving climate. Consumers are being advised to look for payment protection schemes when appointing tradespeople, so this product will certainly help our members meet that demand, whilst helping them to commercially stand out, win more business and protect their own income."

Andrew Kaye, CEO of Transpact.com, says: "We already have tradespeople who use escrow for every job they conduct, to secure the 100% payment due to them - instead of the often 85% payment the client believes is due at the end of the job. These tradespeople increase their actual take home revenue by use of escrow by a significant amount over a year."